


It's Normal

by wolfish_willow



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Conversations, Gen, Good Babysitter Steve Harrington, Good Sibling Jonathan Byers, Jonathan Byers-centric, Post-Season/Series 02, Prompt Fic, and jonathan is surprised, idk what to tag this, just steve being decent at making jonathan feel better
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-05
Updated: 2020-06-05
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:20:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,279
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24555334
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wolfish_willow/pseuds/wolfish_willow
Summary: Written for the prompt: Platonic Jonathan + Steve, trauma.Jonathan feels like he's going crazy because he can't get over what happened to Will in s2. Steve surprisingly makes him feel a little bit better.
Relationships: Jonathan Byers & Steve Harrington
Comments: 16
Kudos: 69





	It's Normal

**Author's Note:**

  * For [WillowRose99](https://archiveofourown.org/users/WillowRose99/gifts).



> I asked for some "ship + 1 word" prompts over on tumblr because I wanted to write some drabbles. This turned out a bit longer than a drabble, so I decided to share it over here.
> 
> Hope you like it!

It was bad last year, after they first got Will back. Jonathan was relieved and grateful and didn't let his little brother out of his sight for days after he got home from the hospital. But that's mostly all it took: days. 

Now, it's been weeks since they got the Mindflayer out of Will and Jonathan feels like he's going crazy. He manages to keep himself from following Will around, barely. He can't relax and has trouble sleeping. Can't shake the fear that he'll wake up and his brother will be gone or not himself again.

Jonathan starts picking Will up after school every day, even on the days he stays longer for his club. It takes effort not to walk into the building and find him, but Jonathan doesn't want to upset him. All Will wants is for everyone to treat him like normal. He's conceded to the rides because he knows it makes all of them feel better, but that's as far as he's willing to go. Jonathan doesn't know how the kid does it, but he's beyond proud.

All of this leads to Jonathan standing outside his car, checking his watch at generous thirty second intervals. A car pulls in nearby and he looks up, grateful for something else to focus on.

He raises his eyebrows at Steve's car, wondering what he's doing here. When Steve gets out, it's with more grace—and less stiffness—that he'd used immediately after that night. His face is still a mess, but it's a yellow-green mess of healing bruises, so that's something. Even with his sunglasses on, they're hard to miss.

"Hey," Steve says, shoving his hands in his pocket. He leans back on his car door and scuffs his shoe against the asphalt. Jonathan nods, trying and failing not to bring his shoulders up to his ears. It feels weird interacting with Steve now that Nancy is Jonathan's girlfriend. He doesn't regret that they're together now. Can't. Not with the way she can make him smile, make his day a little better in the moments between worrying about Will and his mom.

He _does_ regret the way it happened. Steve hasn't given either of them any trouble about it, but Jonathan sees the way he looks at Nancy. The way he'll probably look at her for a while, given how new everything still is. Jonathan kind of wishes the two of them had been able to talk about things before, so it wouldn't feel so much like they'd done something wrong.

Clearing his throat, he checks his watch again. There's still a few more minutes before their club ends, which means an even longer wait than that before they all come out.

"Waiting for Will?" Steve asks.

Jonathan looks at him, a little surprised he's making conversation. 

"Yeah," he says, counting to ten in his head before looking at the time again.

"In a hurry?"

"What?"

Steve nods his head at Jonathan's wrist. "You were looking at it when I drove up, too."

"Oh." Jonathan shakes his head. "No, no hurry. Just."

He shrugs, not sure how to explain. Not sure he wants to, especially to Steve.

"Hard not to hover?" Steve asks with a nod, crossing his arms.

Jonathan raises his eyebrows. Steve shrugs, "What? Your little brother was possessed by some kind of monster from another dimension. That's _after_ he disappeared and everyone thought he, well. You know. After trauma like that, it's normal to feel a little—" he waves a hand "—whatever."

Jonathan squints, tilting his head. Steve shrugs again, pulling his arm tighter across his chest.

"Or so Dustin keeps telling me."

"Dustin?" Jonathan hadn't realized the two of them were talking? Hanging out? "Is he the reason you're here?"

"Yeah," Steve says, "Apparently I'm having dinner at his house. I didn't get a vote."

He moves his head and Jonathan is sure he's rolling his eyes behind his sunglasses. There's no mistaking the softness in his voice or the small smile on his face, though. Who'd have thought Steve Harrington would be happy about a thirteen year old inviting him over?

"And he talks to you about…"

Steve turns his head towards the building.

"Yeah, I, uh. I don't," Steve sighs, looking at the ground. "Whatever, I've been pretty jumpy I guess, especially around Hargrove. Dustin wanted to make me feel better or something, I don't know."

Jonathan hadn't noticed, but he hadn't been looking either. He wonders if avoiding seeing him and Nancy together is the only reason Steve's stopped eating lunch in the cafeteria, or if it has more to do with the table he used to occupy; where Billy sits in Steve's old spot right next to Tommy. He's even more obnoxious that Steve used to be, seems like a better fit for Steve's old friends.

Steve hadn't been afraid of Jonathan after their fistfight. It's only now that Jonathan realizes he never got the full story about what happened while he was at Hopper's cabin.

"Huh," he says, not knowing what else _to_ say.

"Thing is, it did," Steve says slowly. "Make me feel better, I mean. To know it's normal to not be able to just let it go right away. So it's okay to be worried about your brother for a while."

Wow, is all Jonathan can think. Steve Harrington is trying to make him feel better. And it's actually working, though that might just be the shock calming him down. He's not sure. "Yeah?"

"I'm sure it's killing you to wait out here, Dustin told me they're always late coming out. But you haven't gone in and told him to hurry up or anything. I think you're probably doing better than you think."

"Huh," Jonathan says again. He's felt crazy for weeks at having to fight the urge to follow Will everywhere. But Steve is right, he hasn't given into it. Hasn't actually followed his brother everywhere he goes, or stopped him from going out at all. And he does wait for him outside, lets him stay long even though he's dying to go in there and check on him. So maybe he's a little messed up, and maybe it will still take time before he's able to sleep easier, but he could be worse.

"Thanks," he says just as doors open. He doesn't move, doesn't even look, wants to make sure Steve knows he's being sincere. "That does kind of make me feel better."

Steve pushes up from his car and smiles. He shrugs, pulling his keys out of his pocket. 

"Glad I could help," he says right before the kids apparently notice them standing there.

"Steve!" Dustin yells, rushing over to the car, bike next to him. "C'mon, we're gonna be late."

"Excuse you, which one of us was here on time, shithead?" Steve says, but he rounds the back and pops the trunk for Dustin to stow his bike in. He sets his hand on Dustin's head, shaking it a little. Dustin grins up at him and Jonathan can't look away. "Good day?"

Jonathan watches them get in the car, Dustin wasting no time launching into his entire day. Steve doesn't stop smiling, but he does wave when the rest of the kids call out their goodbyes before they drive away.

"Ready to go?"

Jonathan turns and sees Will standing by the passenger side door. He's smiling, too, waving to the rest of his friends as they head out on their bikes, or skateboard in Max's case. 

"Yeah," he says, hardly able to believe the conversation he just had, and who he had it with. He's glad he did, though.

"Yeah, let's go."

**Author's Note:**

> If you enjoyed this, please consider leaving a comment. They make me smile. :D


End file.
